How much does room temp affect PC cooling?

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ddemon

ddemon

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Apr 29, 2011
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Hi,
I'm planning an i5 2500k build for gaming and multi media, with a view to overclocking and just for constant day to day use. I live in a reasonably hot climate +40C at times in summer and i have no home air con. How much will room temp affect my cooling needs?
There seems to be alot of different stuff written about fan configurations in cases these days and i'm just wondering if anyone here any personal experience that might help me in choosing a case?

So far i'm considering things like:
NZXT Phantom (for aesthetics as it will be in my living room next to the TV running as a gaming and media center)
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=7024943&body=MAIN

or

Cooler Master HAF932
EdpNo=4146085&CatId=1510http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4146085&CatId=1510

just as examples as i'm open for suggestions please
 
Solution
geofelt
40c. is 104f. My synpathies.

The very best coolers in an open test bed will give you cpu temperatures of 27c over ambient. So you are starting at 67c.
Overclocking, you can expect 35c over ambient. Inside a case, it will be worse.

Here are some suggestions:
1) get the best aftermarket cpu cooler you can afford. Something like the prolimatech megahalems.
2) Plan on a noisier pc. Use higher output fans on the cpu cooler.
3) Get a case with high airflow. Two 120mm intake fans or two 120mm output fans would be a minimum. Replace the stock fans with higher output versions.
4) Abandon thoughts of a spiffy looking case. Get one that is functional. Something like the Antec 100, 200, or three hundred.
5) get a...
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Not too much i can do about the room temp without spending the money i'm saving to get my new PC on air con instead. And thats not gonna happen ..lol
I'm really just asking for anyones experiences with different Gaming cases or fan configurations and particularly in a hot climate?
Anything anyone might want to share that might help me make a more informed decision?
 
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Well from my experience living in California with no AC my cpu temps can raise from up to 5-10c on idle...like for instance right now on idle i get around 35-38c on a hot day at 85F outside temps...During a cold day it's around 27c-30c on idle...So yes it does raise your temps if your room gets hotter...Part of the reason why i went back to stock settings on my i5 2500k...I need to buy AC for my room before i overclock my cpu again...This is also using a aftermartket heatsink...Honestly i can't even tell the difference in performance from 3.3ghz to 4.2ghz while gaming or doing anything else...The new sandybridge cpu's are fast already they don't really need overclocking unless you wanna show off some benchmarks..So right now i have mine at stock settings with turbo enbaled so if it needs to be overclocked it overclocks itself to 3.7ghz which to me is more then enough :)...But i recommend getting a aftermarket heatsink on the new sandybridge...the intel stock heatsinks aren't good

my case also has 2 intake fans and 1 rear exhaust..i'll probably get a top cover with 2 fans on top for it...to exhaust more hot air..
 
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Get you a box fan and the HAF 932....turn the box fan to blow into the intake side of the case...It will help some but at 40+c with no AC..I would save up for some A/C...I lived in Fontana CA in a house with no AC in the summer room temps were outrageous...highest temp I seen in my room was 110 F...very uncomfortable...if you do get the Computer cooled...you'll still be sweating while OCing..LOL
 
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A couple of years ago, if memory serve me right, as Ambient temp goes up 1 C, cpu temp goes up approx 1.5 C.

Based on that if ambient was 21 C and cpu temp was at say 30 C. If ambient went up to 31 C then cpu would go to approx 45 C (this was for Idle). There are some variables. RH plays a factor. The higher relative Humidity provides better cooling effect than say dry air. IE 90F in desert is worse than 90 F on inthe Midwest.
 
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Thanks, thats quite interesting as a just of what could be 35C on the CPU between winter and summer worries me a bit but i am on the coast so humidity is high to.

I'm starting to second thought overclocking but leaning towards getting an after market CPU cooler straight away anyway instead of putting it off.

Sounds like i should considering a better cooled case much more aethetics as come summer this could be very important.
 
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40c. is 104f. My synpathies.

The very best coolers in an open test bed will give you cpu temperatures of 27c over ambient. So you are starting at 67c.
Overclocking, you can expect 35c over ambient. Inside a case, it will be worse.

Here are some suggestions:
1) get the best aftermarket cpu cooler you can afford. Something like the prolimatech megahalems.
2) Plan on a noisier pc. Use higher output fans on the cpu cooler.
3) Get a case with high airflow. Two 120mm intake fans or two 120mm output fans would be a minimum. Replace the stock fans with higher output versions.
4) Abandon thoughts of a spiffy looking case. Get one that is functional. Something like the Antec 100, 200, or three hundred.
5) get a graphics card that has a dual slot direct exhaust cooling system. Some cards like this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814162078 may do a good job of cooling on an open test bed. But, in a case the hot air collects, raising both the gpu and cpu temperatures. A better example would be something like this:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130625
6) Keep your wiring neat, and out of the airflow as much as possible.
7) Remove dust filters to improve airflow. Just clean your PC more often.

Lastly, don't worry too much about temperatures. A cpu or graphics card will downclock if necessary to protect itself from damage.
 
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Solution
Very helpfull thanks geofelt.

I'm looking the HD 6950 GPU and all seem to have the dual slot exaust so thats a starts and i feel that a full size case will be easier to cool giving that everything wont be packed so tightly in, alowing for more airflow, and size isn't too much of an issue as i will not be trying to fit it into a particular space.

Noise on the otherhand i'm unsure of. This with be my first PC build in 8 to 10 years, other than cannibalising older stuff together..lol
I just don't know how loud all these case fans, GPU and CPU coolers end up being?
i don't think i'll be too picky about it but on the other hand it will be in living room on the entertainment unit or the like. Don't want to have to crank the sound up too much to drown out the PC thats playing it ..lol
 
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lol ...that post does make me sound like an intell snob hey.

I'm only looking to build Sandy Bridge because the cost to performance seems to be the best i can get at the moment.
I'm running an old Athlon 64 3000+ at the moment and have had several AMD's over the years so hopefull i'm not "one of them" ....lol

So good cooling options and a bit of care and hopefully i can make the best of it.

Sand don't burn anyway! ....lol
 
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Sand indeed does not burn, it just melts, you need the reaction of fuel (sand), oxygen and heat to constitute burning ...lol

But some how i fear we are now waaaay off thread here ...lol
 
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Piss off.. :hello: .get my name out of quotation marks...thanks for the science lesson....douche...sorry OP didn't mean to feed the trolls :lol:
 
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OP doesn't even have an A/C unit and your talking using geothermal wells..... :pt1cable:
 
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